At least seven million players worldwide have embodied Solid Snake, guiding his mission through a nuclear facility to rescue hostages and stop the FOXHOUND from launching a nuclear attack. A critical and commercial hit, Metal Gear Solid remains one of the most successful entries to the stealth game franchise created by Hideo Kojima. The video game often credited for redefining and popularizing its genre has spawned multiple sequels alongside adaptations into other forms of media.
Since the plan to bring Solid Snake to the big screen was first announced, Metal Gear Solid has been novelized, adapted into a radio drama, and a comic book series. Yet the movie has been stuck in development since the mid-2000s. While the project hasn’t been abandoned, there hasn’t been much of an update regarding its status of late. What’s the current status of the Metal Gear Solid movie?
Script For The Metal Gear Solid Movie Is Still In Development
https://twitter.com/VogtRoberts/status/1201987288625897472
The latest update on the Metal Gear Solid movie came in mid-2024, when Avi Arad disclosed that the film’s script is still in the works. He got involved with the project during the franchise’s 25th Anniversary back in August 2012, when Kojima announced that Arad Productions would partner with Columbia Pictures to take up the project. The Super Monsters creator confirmed that the adaptation is still happening while speaking to Game’s Brian Crecente.
“We’re working on the script some more, but I can’t talk about it yet,” he said, assuring that the wait would be worth it in the end. “I think everyone’s going to be really excited and surprised. I think getting Metal Gear right will obviously be amazing because I think it’s a lot more meditative than some of the other adaptations. Personally, I want it to be terrific,” he added.
Following the unveiling of Jordan Vogt-Roberts (Kong: Skull Island) as the director in 2015, Fast Girl’s writer Jay Basu was roped in to write the script soon after. Derek Connolly, best known for his writing credits in the Jurassic World films, assumed that responsibility in November 2017. By December 2019, he had submitted a second draft for the Metal Gear Solid movie, which he co-wrote with Vogt-Roberts. The director divulged this on Twitter (now X), in a post that in part reads: “We just turned in a new draft. It’s full Kojima-quirk and full military surrealism… I’m hoping to meet a specific actor very soon.”
Is Oscar Isaac Still Solid Snake?
Peo Dameron actor, Oscar Isaac, was tapped to play the lead role a year after Vogt-Roberts’ tweet about meeting an actor for the Metal Gear Solid movie. The American actor indicated his interest in the role in a March 2019 interview with IGN. When he was asked which movie adapted from a video game he’d like to star in, the Golden Globe winner named Metal Gear Solid. “That’s the one, I’m throwing my hat in for that one,” he told the publication.
While it has been reported that Isaac is no longer attached to the role, the actor never confirmed this. The project’s slow progress might have been a nightmare for him, but it’s uncertain he’s walked away from playing Solid Snake, especially as no other performer has been cast for the role. If he’s indeed detached from the Metal Gear Solid movie, the creative team shouldn’t have a hard time finding a replacement. For starters, Captain America actor Anthony Mackie is interested in the project. He told The Wrap that he “would love to do Metal Gear Solid” in July 2023.
The Metal Gear Solid Movie Was First Announced In May 2006
The Metal Gear fandom isn’t optimistic about the adaptation. This is because the film has been in development since May 2006, when the franchise’s creator broke the news. Since then, notable filmmakers such as Uwe Boll, Kurt Wimmer, and Paul Thomas Anderson have been teased to helm the project. Just as Christian Bale, Viggo Mortensen, and Hugh Jackman have been suggested for the Solid Snake role. The speculations lingered on until January 2011, when the producer attached to the adaptation divulged it wouldn’t be happening anytime soon.
Michael De Luca told the press that Metal Gear’s developer, Konami, was being too protective of its property and wouldn’t let Sony have the level of control they wanted. The producer added that he doesn’t think the project will ever move forward. “A movie can only hurt,” De Luca told Collider. “If the movie’s great, you’re probably not going to sell more games… The franchise being as big as it is kind of helps the movie… I’m not sure the movie does the same thing for the game,” the producer explained. Check out the latest update on the Dead by Daylight film adaptation.
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